It’s that time of year again! Our friends at USPIRG have released the 34th annual Trouble in Toyland Report. This year’s report highlights a number of potential threats to navigate while shopping for loved ones this holiday season, including toxic amounts of boron in “slime” products and a failure by Amazon to appropriately label choking hazards. For decades, ...

At VPIRG, we know that plastic can be incredibly harmful to our health and the environment, which is why we worked to pass the nation’s toughest ban on single-use plastics here in the Green Mountain State. But some kinds of plastic are even worse than others. Take black plastic, for example. It’s used for a ...

Late yesterday, Governor Scott signed into law a bill (S.55) that he had previously blocked as both governor and lieutenant governor in its earlier iterations. The law is designed to better protect children from toxic chemicals in products that are made specifically for kids. The new law makes important changes to the Chemicals of High Concern ...

Today Governor Scott signed into law a landmark bill protecting against lead in school drinking water. The move is being celebrated by environmental advocates across the state. “There’s really only one kind of water we should be giving our kids in schools and child care centers, and that’s unleaded,” commented Paul Burns, Executive Director of ...

Neonicotinoid insecticides threaten bees all over the Green Mountain State – which has serious implications for all of us. For instance, the UN just published a sobering report that highlights how crucial biodiversity is and how human activity, like the use of pesticides, is hurting biodiversity around the world. Just as concerning is the fact ...

Legislation to better protect kids from toxics is now on its way to Governor Scott’s desk for consideration following the Legislature’s final passage of S.55 on May 22.  If signed into law, the legislation will grant the Commissioner of Health greater authority to protect kids from dangerous chemicals in children’s products and collect better information on ...

On Wednesday Vermont’s Legislature passed S. 40, a landmark bill regulating lead in school and childcare center drinking water. After some tense debate between legislators in the House and Senate, a conference committee reached a final decision to set the action level for remediation at 4 parts per billion. They also pledged to set aside $3 ...

Governor Scott signed a landmark bill on Thursday establishing drinking water standards for five perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – toxic chemicals that have been widely used in industry and consumer products since the 1950s. Known as “forever chemicals” because of their long lifespan, PFAS have been shown to increase cancer risk, impair immune system ...